Ukraine said its new attack drones can hit targets 600 miles inside Russia — and appeared to use them right away

A still from video footage shared by Russian media outlet Baza purports to show a drone attack on Yelabuga, a town in the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia.

Telegram/Baza

Ukraine bragged that it made drones with a range of more than 620 miles.Russia then reported drone attacks on factories around 620 miles from Ukraine’s border.Ukraine has used drones to attack Russian factories and oil refineries.

Ukraine said it made attack drones that can fly more than 620 miles — just before Russia reported drone attacks on factories around 620 miles from Ukraine’s border.

Ukraine’s Digital Transformation Minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, told German news outlet Welt that Ukraine had developed drone models that can fly more than 1,000 kilometers (620 miles).

Soon after, authorities in Russia reported attacks at sites in Tatarstan, which is around 620 miles from the closest point in Ukraine.

The Head of the Republic of Tatarstan, Rustam Minnikhanov, said on Telegram that “drone attacks took place against factories in Tatarstan at Yelabuga and Nizhnekamsk,” Agence France-Presse reported.

According to Reuters, Nizhnekamsk is home to Russia’s third-largest oil refinery, which processes about 155,000 barrels of crude refining per day.

Close to Yelabuga are chemical and mechanical engineering stores and metal treatment factories, AFP reported. An intelligence source told Reuters that Ukrainian-made drones hit a facility producing long-range “Shahed” attack drones.

Minnikhanov said the attacks “did not cause serious damage and the working of the factories was not affected.” However, he added that “unfortunately in Yelabuga, there were people wounded.”

Ukraine typically does not take responsibility for attacks that take place on Russian soil. But the latest hits fit into its playbook, as it has previously used drones to target military sites and oil refineries within Russia.

Using drones suits Ukraine for two reasons.

The first is that Ukraine has said it will not use long-range weapons given to it by its allies to strike Russian territory. By making drones itself, it can overcome the limits of this commitment.

The second is that Ukraine is running low on other weapons that it can use to fight back against Russia’s invasion.

Ukraine is ramping up its production of drones, including surveillance and attack drones and naval drones, at the same time as it makes more of its own weaponry.

But Russia is doing the same, and experts warn that Russia, as a larger country with more resources, has a big advantage.

Ukraine has been using drones in lieu of artillery in some attacks as it deals with critical shortages of ammunition. But its situation doesn’t look good in the near term.

House Republicans in the US are stalling a $60 billion package of further aid for Ukraine.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian soldiers say they have to pass on hitting Russian targets because they don’t have the ammunition.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned on Friday that Ukraine would have to start retreating if Congress did not approve more aid soon.